Will Public Education and Teacher Unions Survive Trump?

The pundits are suggesting names for the next Secretary of Education, that’s if the Department of Education survives. Betsy De Vos is campaigning as well as the Commissioner of Education in Oklahoma  who ordered posting the Ten Commandments in every classroom.  Do you post the Protestant or the Catholic commandments? They’re different! 

Are you working on a lesson plan explaining what “coveting your neighbors wife” means?

Only the tip of a humongous iceberg.

 Slashing education dollars is probably at the top of the list, Title 1, Individuals with Disabilities (IDEA), and on and on. Remaining education dollars sent as vouchers, in other words the parent can spend voucher dollars in public, private, parochial, charter or home schooling.. Title IX will be shredded and teacher unions targeted by diminishing the ability to organize and probably making striking a capital crime.

At the state level Governor Hochul’s budget, due in January will undoubtedly reflect Trump’s new plans to slash federal spending.

Mayor Adams’ trial begins in April, he serves until the end of 2024 unless he’s convicted or removed by the governor. if not he serves through another budget cycle. The list of Democratic candidates vying for the Democratic designation in the June primary grows by the day and probably a viable Republican opponent in the November 2025 general election.

The opposition caucuses in the UFT, so far without a candidate, are challenging the current UFT leadership promising salary increases, “fixing” Tier 6 as well as firing all current UFT employees.

How?

The only response, “prepare for a strike.”  Not exactly a viable strategy

I was hoping the opposition caucuses would suggest a collaboration, working together to survive.

If you ever wondered, “United Federation of Teachers” refers to the founding of the union, the  Teachers Guild and the High School Teachers Association merged, after decades of conflict.  Read an online history of teacher unionism in New York City here 

Mulgrew and his team are masterful in navigating New York City and New York State politics.

A PERB principle is pattern bargaining, unions with the same employer receive the same dollar value bargaining package, the cost of reducing class class is part of the dollar package. Somehow Mulgrew and his team, quietly, very quietly, crafted a class size reduction bill, bill was packaged with the hundreds of bills pushed through in the final days of the session, called “the big ugly,” and in spite of Mayor Adams’ demanding the governor veto the bill, as the the governor’s run for election was faltering she signed the bill and we endorsed her, she won in one of the closest gubernatorial races in decades

The following year at the top of the governor’s agenda was a bill allowing the state to override local zoning laws that in effect prohibited low and moderate housing.   Bloomberg gave her $5M and she loaded the airways with commercials, to no avail. The payback to Bloomberg was removing the cap on charter schools in NYC, it would have meant 100 more charter schools, the loss of substantial funding and jobs.  Incredibly the leaders of both house of the legislature refused to pass the budget until the cap was in place, for three weeks the leaders refused to pass the budget, the governor withdrew her demand, the cap remains. 

We need union leadership that is agile, tough, smart and shrewd in navigating the murky passages of Albany and City Hall

Trump-like attacks on union staffers by opposition caucuses only encourages enemies to weaken the union, and we are facing an onslaught from Washington. The opposition is a supporter of the NY Health Act aka Medicare for All, Mulgrew and citywide union leadership have been meeting with the prime sponsor of the bill,  How much will the bill cost members?  Will the benefits be equal to or greater than current benefits?  In other words doing due diligence before you support bill that will totally change health plans.

We are facing the greatest challenge to public education and teacher unionism in our history.

Opposition caucuses may accuse me of fear-mongering, I’m facing reality,

The UFT was born as part of a merger, I’m suggesting the caucuses, the political parties figure out how to work together, to hang together, or, to hang separately.